Final Fantasy VII originally was a PS1 exclusive in 1997. From there, its popularity exploded so much so that in the 2000s, a compilation project was started. This included prequel and sequel games along with a movie. One of these games from Square Enix was Dirge of Cerberus on the PS2 in 2006.
The game is the furthest in the Final Fantasy VII timeline which saw Vincent fighting off the remnants of a new Shinra organization in Midgar called Deepground. Even though Final Fantasy VII Remake takes place far before that game, this Yuffie DLC adds a lot from it but not quite everything.
7 The Basic Plot Of Dirge Of Cerberus
Dirge of Cerberus takes place three years after the events of Final Fantasy VII. It is the last point in the original story’s timeline. The game features Vincent fighting off Deepground who were a secret organization within Shinra that have been biding their time ever since the corporation fell in Final Fantasy VII. Besides killing innocents, their main goal is to get something called the Proto Materia in order to control Omega Weapon to then destroy the planet.
6 Yuffie’s Outfit
Yuffie’s Mog outfit in Final Fantasy VII Remake’s DLC may seem random but it is not. She wears a similar outfit in Dirge of Cerberus. While her clothes underneath are different between that game and Final Fantasy VII, this seems like a definite connection.
Yuffie in general is a big character in Dirge of Cerberus even though she is not playable, unlike Vincent. This makes sense as Square Enix could have seemingly done this to give both characters some extra love since they were only optional characters in Final Fantasy VII. Now Yuffie finally gets her own adventure via this DLC.
5 Involved Final Fantasy VII Characters
Other characters from Final Fantasy VII make appearances as well in both small and large roles. Reeve is basically the commander in chief of the anti-Deepground unit known as the WRO. He’s in the game but so is his robotic counterpart, Cait Sith. That character is the only other one besides Vincent who is playable in the game.
Toward the second chunk of the game, Cid makes an appearance as the commander of the WRO’s air brigade. Other characters like Cloud make small cameos in some big cinematic fights. However, they don’t really interact with Vincent, Yuffie, or anyone else in what is considered to be the main cast of Dirge of Cerberus.
4 Who Controls Deepground?
In Dirge of Cerberus Reeve says that he believes only Hojo, Scarlet, Heidegger, and President Shinra knew and/or controlled Deepground when the company was still around. It is implied that not even Rufus knew about them during Final Fantasy VII’s events. In Final Fantasy VII Remake this seems to be the case at least in the case of Scarlet who is the one that activates the division once she is backed into a corner by Yuffie and Sonon.
Whether they go back underground for the rest of the remake sequels is to be determined. However, since they were activated so early now, it only stands to reason that Square Enix has bigger plans for them instead of segregating Deepground to just one game via Dirge of Cerberus.
3 The Tsviets
It is never stated in the main story for Final Fantasy VII Remake but Weiss and Nero belong to an elite branch of Deepground. They are known as The Tsviets, with Weiss being their leader. There were many more members in Dirge of Cerberus but the DLC only had these two. Each one of them came with a particular weapon and power.
For example, in both the original game and this DLC, Nero has the power to control darkness. How that power operates is never really explained in either game nor are any of The Tsviets‘ powers. They were Square Enix’s version of Metal Gear bosses.
2 Digital Doubles
In the original release of Final Fantasy VII Remake, Cloud could compete in VR challenges via Chadley. This young scientist didn’t have much of a story role in the main game and yet he does appear in the DLC very briefly. He is shown helping Shinra upload Weiss’ consciousness into a digital realm. This might seem like a simple way to get Weiss in the remake as a boss without Yuffie actually having to face off against this powerful foe so early.
There is more to it than that because in Dirge of Cerberus Weiss has a similar fate. His body dies, but it gets reused by Hojo who downloads his data into Weiss after Hojo’s body dies toward the end of Final Fantasy VII. It should also be mentioned that Shelke, one of The Tsviets, has the ability to jump into cyberspace. This sounds like the setup to a spinoff entry in the remake series wherein Square Enix is going to make a Kingdom Hearts: Re:coded equivalent which also dealt with digital doubles.
1 What Does This Mean For Future Games?
The very idea of Dirge of Cerberus content making it into Yuffie’s DLC is no accident. There is a theory going around that the remake series will be split into two parties. Cloud will be going after Shinra and Sephiroth while Yuffie leads a gang to try and stop Shinra and Deepground. Eventually, both teams will meet for one final game.
Splitting the games would allow Square Enix to not have to stress over putting so many party members into each entry. A smaller controllable party could mean less stress on the developers. Who would be on Yuffie’s team? Since Vincent, Cait Sith, and Cid were all main characters in Dirge of Cerberus, that might be the party. This is all just speculation for now but let’s also not forget about Zack who could start a third game series within these remakes.